WASHINGTON, DC - Today the Children's Defense Fund released the following statement regarding President Obama's plan to reverse Bush Administration policies that have impeded state efforts to provide health coverage to children:

"We applaud President Obama for pledging to remove the onerous policies put in place by former President Bush's Administration that prohibited countless children from receiving critical health coverage," said CDF General Counsel Susan Gates. "By signing this measure, President Obama has indicated his commitment to making it easier for many children to obtain health coverage without having to meet some of the cumbersome and unnecessary rules set in place by the Bush Administration. Helping children get health coverage will ease the burden on working families and is key to helping get our economy back on track. We now look forward to working with President Obama to make health coverage for every child in America—and all Americans—a reality in 2009."

The Bush Administration policies included eight regulations and a policy directive that could have severely limited states' ability to provide health coverage to children.